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The Stars Tell how YHVH will Weigh Us in the Balance Scales
“Let God weigh me on honest scales and He will know that I am blameless.“ Job 31:6
In this passage, Job believed that he had been walking uprightly with YHVH, so he was not afraid to speak aloud to his friends in front of YHVH. He is essentially saying that he is willing to undergo YHVH’s righteous judgment if he has slipped up anywhere in the path of his life. Notice that Job refers to honest scales when he talks about YHVH testing him to see if he measures up to YHVH’s standard of righteousness.
Of course, having all the scriptures available to us now, we can look back and do some easy “Monday morning quarterbacking” relating to Job’s statement, knowing now as we do that no one can measure up to God’s standard of righteousness. Romans 3:10 says: “As it is written [quoted from Psalm 14:1-3]: ’There is none righteous, no, not one’”, and then in Romans 3:23 Sha’ul (Paul) says “for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,”. He then follows with the divine punch line after the comma in Romans 3:24 “being justified freely by His grace through the redemption that is in Messiah Yeshua”. So, if I put on my 6-year-old Bible analysis hat, I could easily surmise that believers can be justified before God, but only through the blood of Yeshua our Redeemer.
The scriptures pertaining to YHVH’s judgment lead into the second major sign in the Zodiac: Libra, which means “weighing in the scales”, from the ancient Hebrew name for this sign, Mozanaim. We learned from previous postings on the “Gospel in the Stars” that the original Hebrew root word for Zodiac (Zodi) means “the way” or “path”. So, combining Job’s speech with this meaning, we can see that Job tried to the best of his human ability to follow Abba’s path, but like all of us, when he was weighed in the scales by YHVH, he fell far short of His righteous standard.
However, the Good News (Besorim in Hebrew) is that YHVH made a way for us to be saved in spite of our sins and weakness, and Messiah Yeshua provided the solution for all people for all times. I believe that Job hinted at knowing His Messiah (Yeshua), the true Savior of the world, when he said in Job 19:25: “For I know that my Redeemer lives, and that He shall stand at last on the earth.”
Digging down a bit deeper into the meaning of the ancient names of the stars in Libra, we see that a very consistent theme emerges. The key stars in Libra (from ancient Hebrew and Arabic) are: “the price which is deficient”; “the price which covers”; “the value of the redemption”; and “the price of the conflict”. From these names, it is easy to paint a picture that tells a beautiful Gospel story: human beings are hopelessly deficient in our fallen souls; we need a Redeemer to balance out the scales, which we cannot do on our own; YHVH has prepared a Redeemer for us from the foundation of the world; Yeshua our Messiah is that Redeemer, who paid the ultimate price and atoned for our sins (covered us with His blood); and now we can stand righteous before YHVH by calling on His name and trusting in Yeshua. As seen in the image of Libra at the beginning of this posting, our scales are severely unbalanced – only Yeshua can balance them out for us.
As with all the signs of the Zodiac, there are three constellations associated with Libra: Crux (the Southern Cross); Victima (the Victim); and Corona (the Crown). It is not too difficult to see how these three fit perfectly into the rest of the story of Libra. Crux, which appears like the Hebrew letter Tav (which looked like an “X” in ancient Hebrew), graphically shows how the Messiah was to die and atone for our sins. Interestingly, the Southern Cross disappeared from the night sky in Jerusalem after Yeshua’s crucifixion and can only be seen in the Southern hemisphere now.
The second constellation in Libra, Victima, which is named Sura (Lamb) in Hebrew, points to Yeshua as the divine Victim who willingly chose to pay the ransom for our redemption. It vividly brings to light the scripture from Revelation 13:8: “…written in the Book of Life of the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world.” This scripture needs no further explanation!
The final constellation in Libra is Corona, named Atarah in Hebrew, which means “the Crown Bestowed”. Once again, this fits well into the overall picture of this sign, especially when we look at verses such as Hebrews 2:9: “But we see Yeshua — who for a little while was made lower than the angels — now crowned with glory and honor because He suffered death, so that by God’s grace He might taste death for all humanity.”
So now, armed with this knowledge, I challenge you to worship the One and only One who is worthy to balance out the scales in our favor, Yehovah our Redeemer, and Yeshua His Son, who paid the ultimate price so that we could be restored to Abba Father.
His Name Alone is Holy
From my first two postings about God’s Name, we know that YHVH [Yehovah] wants us to know and speak His name, and that His name (Yehovah) has been written in Hebrew over 100 times in ancient Scripture texts. I have given examples of how we can use His name when we are speaking healing, deliverance, or blessings of any kind over another person. I have also explained how the pronunciation of His Name has been hidden from the majority of Jews and Christians for more than 2000 years.
What I have not talked about yet is why we are to treat His name as holy and to revere it above all else. In Psalm 138[ESV]: David says to YHVH: “I bow down toward Your holy temple and give thanks to Your name for Your steadfast love and Your faithfulness, for You have exalted above all things Your name and Your word.” The key is that David says YHVH has exalted His name and His word above all else – if we want to focus on what is most important to Abba, then we need to listen to what He says about exalting His name.
There are also many scriptures that talk about the holiness of YHVH’s name: “…all flesh shall bless His holy name Forever and ever.” (Ps 145:21); “…He has commanded His covenant forever: holy and awesome is His name.” (Ps 111:9); “Bless the Lord, O my soul; and all that is within me, bless His holy name!” (Ps 103:1); “For our hearts shall rejoice in Him, because we have trusted in His holy name.” (Ps 33:21); “Let them praise His great and awesome name — He is holy.” (Ps 99:3). So what exactly does holy mean in this context? The Hebrew word for holy (kadosh) actually means “set apart”, and we know from Scripture study that YHVH (His name and His word) is set apart from everything else in the universe, just as David implied in the Psalm 138 quote from the previous paragraph. YHVH also wants us to be set apart from the world, as we are told by Him to be holy as He is holy (Lev 11:45, quoted in 1 Pet 1:16).
My favorite example of the holiness of God’s name [Yehovah] is the display of His awesome power in I Kings 17-18. In the beginning of this story, YHVH is prophesying to Ahab through Elijah that there will be a drought in the land for three years, until YHVH speaks His word to end the drought (I Kings 17:1). During this time, there are signs and wonders to confirm that YHVH is working through Elijah, such as the miracle of the widow’s food lasting through the drought and her son being raised from the dead (I Kings 17:8-24).
When Elijah returns to confront Ahab and his false prophets of Ba’al and Asherah, he knows he can trust in the name of YHVH to overcome the evil powers, and to prove to them who is the true God [Elohim], Creator and Master of the universe. Although Ahab and Jezebel and their warriors had been seeking to kill Elijah, he now confronts his enemies boldly and challenges their false god to a duel (I Kings 18:21). He compels them to make a decision as to whom they will serve: YHVH or Ba’al. This is a decision we must all make at some point in our lives, because there is no middle ground – either we serve the world (Satan and his kingdom of darkness) or the true God, YHVH.
In the familiar story of the confrontation between good and evil, Ba’al and YHVH, there is no contest of course, and YHVH is victorious. Elijah tells the false prophets to call on the name of their gods, and says that he will call on the name of his God (I Kings 18:24). Working through Elijah, YHVH then graphically demonstrates that God’s name is unique and set apart (kadosh – holy) from everything else in the universe. Elijah first built an altar and dedicated it to YHVH, then asked YHVH to show the people that he was the only true God, and prayed that He would turn their hearts back to Him (I Kings 18:46-37). YHVH then answered Elijah’s prayer convincingly by sending fire from heaven to burn up not only the wood and the sacrificial bull, but also the water in the trench around the altar (I Kings 18:38).
The response of the people was to immediately prostrate themselves on the ground and start worshipping the true God, Yehovah: “Now when all the people saw it, they fell on their faces; and they said, “The LORD, He is God! The LORD, He is God!” (I Kings 18:39). The people’s declaration is even more powerful when translated directly from the Hebrew, as they said: Yehovah, He is the God [Elohim]; Yehovah, He is the God [Elohim]. Since they had previously been worshipping many (false) gods, the key point of their declaration is that Yehovah is the one and only true God of the universe, set apart (holy) from the world and all other false gods!
There is power in the name Yehovah. His name is to be revered and praised, just as He is revered and praised. We can trust in Yehovah and in His name to protect us and provide for us. We can call on His name with confidence, and He wants us to be set apart from the world as He is set apart (holy).
One Creator God
The Real Meaning of Chanukkah
Probably the most well-known Jewish feast in the modern-day world is Chanukkah (more commonly spelled Hanukah). Chanukkah (1 Maccabees 2-4) is not one of the original feasts Yehovah instructed us to observe. It is a feast to commemorate a series of miracles God performed for the Jews in the dark days of Antiochus Epiphanes, so my belief is that Yehovah honors our celebration of this feast, as long as we stay focused on Him as the “reason for the season”.
Antiochus Epiphanes, theSyrian King of the Jews within the Greek empire, had forbidden all observance of the true Sabbath, YHVH’s Feasts, and circumcision (in I Macc 2:8-12). He mandated that anyone who studied or kept the Torah would be put to death. He also defiled the Temple and erected a statue of Zeus in the Temple on the 25th of the Hebrew month of Kislev, in 168 BC. In fact, all the ancient chief pagan gods had their birthday on Kislev 25 – note that the modern solar-based calendar was not adopted until 46 BC, so the Roman world was still using the lunar-based calendar at this time.
Judas Maccabeus and his four brothers (all Jewish priests) took up their swords and battle hammers to defeat the Syrian rulers and their pagan sun god religious system in 165 BC. Interestingly, Maccabee (iaB<q;j) means “hammer”, so one could rightly say that they “hammered” their enemy. Once they had defeated the Syrians and taken back their temple, the Maccabee brothers and their followers spent seven days cleansing the Temple of all the pagan altars and idols, and then re-dedicated the Temple on the eighth day. Once they had won this victory and purified their Temple, the leaders mandated that a feast called Chanukkah be observed every year starting on Kislev 25 and lasting for 8 days. The Hebrew word Chanukkah (חֲנֻכָּה) actually means “to dedicate”, so this feast is most often referred to as the Feast of Dedication. This feast celebrates the miracle of Yehovah giving them the victory over pagan sun god worship, as well as the cleansing and re-dedication of their temple to the true God, Yehovah.
There are many Jewish traditions and legends surrounding Chanukkah, such as the story of the oil in the Menorah lasting 8 days when it should have only lasted 1 day. However, the real reasons for the 8-day duration of the feast are two-fold: to commemorate Yehovah’s miracle that allowed them to defeat the Syrians and re-dedicate the Temple; and, to celebrate the Feast of Tabernacles (Sukkot) which they had not been able to do for 3 years (see II Maccabees 10:6).
One strong confirmation that Yehovah honors our celebration of Chanukkah is that Yeshua looked favorably on the feast, as He went up to the Jerusalem Temple mount and taught the people during the feast (John 10:22-23). Based on Jewish tradition, rabbis at the time of Yeshua believed that the Messiah would reveal Himself at the time of Channukah (from the Talmud). In John 10:24, the leaders asked Yeshua: “Why do You keep us in suspense? Are You the Messiah?” In John 9, Yeshua had just done the one miracle that was undeniable proof of His Messiah-ship; He had healed a man born blind, which the leaders said only the Messiah could do!
But because the people were expecting a political/military Messiah who would rescue them from the Romans, they did not recognize Him as the Messiah. Yeshua answered them (John 10:25-26) “I told you, but you did not believe: the works that I do in My Father’s Name, they bear witness of Me. But you do not believe, because you are not of My sheep, as I said to you”. The Jewish leaders denied His miracles in John 10:20-21: “And many of them said, ‘He has a demon, and is mad; why hear ye Him?’ Others said, ‘these are not the words of one who has a demon. Can a demon open the eyes of the blind?’”
Yeshua then presented people with an eternal solution to their problems. In John 10:27-28), He said: “My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me: and I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand. He turned the people from the short-term, physical solution they wanted to a spiritual solution. He said that we are the desecrated temple and need to be cleansed and rededicated to Yehovah. Remember that we are now the temples of the Holy Spirit and we must keep our temples clean (I Cor 6:19). He taught us that we need a long-term (eternal) relationship with Yehovah to fix our spiritual emptiness, because a physical solution cannot fix spiritual problems.
The defeat of their enemies and the re-dedication of the Temple brought back fresh hope to the Jewish people. How fitting that this month, called Kislev in Hebrew, means hope. This relates to the people looking hopefully to the longer, brighter days of Spring, since Kislev 25 occurs very close to the Winter solstice (the shortest day of the year). Yeshua, the Light of the world, brings us eternal hope.
Messiah’s First Coming Foretold in the Stars
“A virgin shall conceive and bear a Son called the Branch, the gloriously beautiful, who shall come down and have dominion. He shall be desired and longed for, but also He shall be despised and be a sin offering. He shall be pierced, but will also pierce. He is the heretofore and the hereafter. He will come suddenly to rule, subdue, govern and tread under foot” (paraphrased from a combination of passages in Isa 4:2, 7:14, 9:6-7, 11:1, 53:3,5; Hag 2:7; Zech 3:8, 6:12; Rev 1:8)
Although this quote is not taken directly from the scriptures, it can be pieced together from the above list of scriptures, and agrees in every detail with the ancient constellation and star names. The word “Zodiac” comes from the Hebrew word zodi, meaning “the way” or “path”. The Greeks use the term ‘Zodiakos’, meaning ‘circle’ to designate the twelve signs and ecliptic circle of the path they follow through the twelve months of the year. We understand Yeshua’s statement that He is “the Way, the truth and the life”, and remember that Yeshua represents the “Strong Man” moving through the circle of the Mazzerot throughout the year (Ps 19:5-6). So based on these two concepts, we recognize that we are meant to follow Yeshua as the Way, and that He is figuratively leading us around the circle of the Zodiac, the signs that tell the Gospel story of Yeshua’s birth, ministry, death, resurrection and final judgment as King of kings.
The first sign of the Mazzerot (Zodiac) is named Virgo (Latin) or Betulah (Hebrew). The reason we know Virgo (Betulah) is the first sign of the Zodiac is because of the great sky painting found in the Temple of Esneh in Egypt, which shows the whole image of the zodiac with all of its constellations. Between Virgo and Leo, there is carved the figure of the sphinx with the head of a woman and the body of a lion. The woman’s face is looking at the Virgin and the lion’s tail is pointing at the Lion, telling us where the Zodiac Gospel story begins and ends. Although I don’t recommend the Latin Vulgate as the most accurate Bible translation source, in this case it helps us understand the meaning of this sign relating to the prophetic passages about the Messiah. Two of the names for this sign are connected – Virgo (Latin) which means a virgin (Isa 7:14); and Virga (Arabic), which means a branch (Isa 11:1).
To confirm the reference to the Branch, the brightest star in Virgo is Tzemach (Hebrew). Although there are 20 different Hebrew words that are translated as “branch”, Tzemach is the only word for branch used to represent the Messiah (example Isa 4:2 – “In that day shall the Branch of Yehovah be beautiful and glorious.”) Virgo’s left hand is shown holding ears of corn – in her left hand is a bright star named Spica, which in Latin means “an ear or seed of corn”. The Hebrews called this star Zerah, which means “the seed” and is the same exact word used in Genesis 3:14-15. Remember how Yeshua used the figure “grain of wheat” or “seed of corn” (depending on the translation): unless the seed [of corn] falls into the ground and dies, it abides alone; but if it dies, it bears much fruit.” He was indicating here how He had to die in order to bring salvation and eternal life to His people.
The other constellations within the sign of Betulah [Virgo] confirm the prophesied roles and attributes of the Messiah. The first constellation is name Coma in Hebrew, which means the “desired” or “longed for” One, as in Haggai 2:7 – “The Desire of all nations shall come”. Ancient Zodiac depictions show a woman with a child in her arms, with the star representing the child designated by an ancient Persian name meaning the “anointed one”. In some ancient teachings thought to have originated from Daniel the prophet, a new star appeared within Coma which represented the newborn Messiah they were seeking.
The second constellation within Virgo is Centaurus (Latin), which is a well-known mythological character purported to be half-man and half-horse. The ancient Hebrew name of this constellation, though, was Bezeh, meaning “despised” as in Isa 53:3 – “He was despised and rejected of men”. Incredibly, the other name for this constellation is Asmeat, which means “a sin offering”, as in Isa 53:10 – “When You make His soul an offering for sin,..”. So, we have a creature here who is the Son of God, both man and sacrificial animal (probably a goat and not an unclean animal such as a horse), who is despised by people but still willing to sacrifice Himself for us. This is a clear picture of Yeshua our Messiah!
The final Virgo constellation is called Bootes (Hebrew), which means “The Coming One”. He is generally shown as a shepherd, with a shepherd’s crook in one hand and a sickle in his other hand. This could represent many things, but most clearly it shows a picture of the Messiah, coming the first time as our shepherd, and at the end of the age as the judge who comes to reap His harvest of souls and cut off those who will still not turn to Him and His Father after their final call to repent. Even in the stars we see Abba Father and Yeshua beckoning to us to repent – how will we respond?
Spiritual Warfare 301
About a month ago, I had the rare privilege of hearing a first-hand testimony describing the practical results of spiritual warfare in a public institution. The institution was a public high school, probably one of the last places a Spirit-filled believer would go to search for evidence of Holy Spirit power. I heard the school principal’s awesome testimony of the transformation of her school from the most warlike school in the county to the most peaceful. The school essentially came out of the kingdom of darkness and entered into the kingdom of light.
When this principal took over the school three years ago, the halls and grounds were characterized as places of open physical warfare, with acts of hostility, verbal abuse, and physical violence perpetrated by members of opposing gangs. A general spirit of fear prevailed on the campus, especially among the students and their parents. The very negative atmosphere within the school also manifested itself through depressed test scores and the inability to qualify students for AP (advanced placement) classes, which are prime indicators of a school’s academic success.
In each of these areas, the school has taken a 180° turn for the better over the last three years. The school is now one of the safest in the county in terms of controlling / avoiding conflict situations, and has the highest percentage of students who qualify for and enroll in AP classes. The students can now strive for academic excellence in a positive atmosphere where they and their parents can feel safe and secure.
So, how did this dramatic transformation happen? When this school’s principal first took over leadership, her first task was to claim the school (building and grounds) for God (YHVH), and to take back authority from the enemy. She and several spirit-filled volunteers walked every inch of the campus, denouncing Satan and his demons who had gained a stronghold there, claiming back the school for God (as in Matt 10:7-8).
On our tour, the principal gave us numerous examples of victory over the enemy, and how that had changed the atmosphere in the school. In one instance, someone had reported demonic graffiti on the back of the school, so she decided to make a show of force against the enemy (as in Col 2:15) by marking over it with black spray paint and then writing scripture verses next to it that showed the power of God that overcame the demons. As she was doing this she sensed someone else’s presence, so she turned around and looked into the eyes of about ten gang members standing right behind her ladder. She prayed for YHVH’s protection and the power of the Holy Spirit to speak through her words, and with the Lord’s help, she was able to diffuse a potentially dangerous confrontation.
In other situations where there were threats and explosive confrontations between students, the principal was able to get spiritually trained school counselors involved in mediation sessions to bring reconciliation between antagonistic students, even getting the local courts involved in some cases to bring peace between defiant students and people in the community.
Hearing these testimonies of reclaiming a public school for YHVH, how can we apply scriptural principles (Luke 10:19, Mark 16:17) to claim victory in our everyday lives? Knowing this truth, what can we do to take authority over the enemy in our home and workplace and claim victory in the name of Yeshua and the power of the Holy Spirit?
Their Voice has Gone out to All the Earth
In my first posting on the “Gospel in the Stars”, I explained that God (YHVH) created everything in His kingdom for His own purposes (Prov 16:4), including the stars of the sky. The most tangible use of the stars in the natural world is for keeping track of God’s “appointed times” (Moedim). As I had mentioned before, the sun moves through all 12 of the Zodiac (Mazzerot in Hebrew) signs throughout the course of the year – one sign each month. So, if you were stranded on a tropical desert island for a year, where you had no noticeable change of meteorological seasons, you would still be able to keep track of the seasons of the year. Remember from my previous blog that when God speaks of His seasons in the scriptures, he does not mean the well-known seasons of Winter, Spring, Summer, and Fall, but rather He is referring to His appointed times (the seven annual Feasts of YHVH) outlined in Lev 23 and many other scriptures.
The real focus of this blog series, though, is to illustrate a more significant purpose that God had for creating and arranging the stars in the sky. Paul’s (Sha’ul’s) letter to the Romans quotes Ps 19:4 when it says “But I ask you, have they [the heathens] not heard? Indeed they have, for ‘Their voice has gone out to all the earth, and their words to the ends of the world’.” (Rom 10:18) The word their in his quotation refers to the stars from Ps 19. He quoted this verse as an irrefutable testimony that even the heathen of the nations outside Israel had seen and heard the witness of the stars, because their voice had gone out to all the earth!
So, let’s talk about some specific examples. Recall from my last posting that Yeshua (Jesus) represents the “strong man” in Ps 19:5 (“which is like a bridegroom coming out of his chamber, and rejoices like a strong man to run its race”). The association of the strong man with the bridegroom confirms that this verse is talking about the Messiah. I had introduced the strong man examples of El Gibbor (paganized to Hercules in later centuries) and Shur (Taurus in pagan astrological terminology) in my Sept 12 blog “Witness in the Stars”. I want to focus now on the Zodiac sign of Taurus or Shur (“the coming and ruling one” as translated from Hebrew), and specifically on the constellation of Orion.
Since Shur represents the coming and ruling one, there is an indisputable association to the Messiah (Yeshua), the judge and ruler of the whole earth. The three constellations in Shur (by their astrological names) are Orion, Eradinus, and Auriga. Orion (or Chesil in Hebrew) means the strong one or hero. Together with the ancient names of stars in Eradinus, this constellation literally means “the river of the Judge’s wrath breaking forth on His enemies”. This ties in with the verses in Dan 7:9-11 which talk about the final judgment at the throne of the “Ancient of Days” – verse 10 says “A river of fire was flowing, and coming out from before Him…the court sat in judgment, and the books were opened.” Auriga means shepherd (as in Isa 40:10-11), which represents Messiah Yeshua, the Good Shepherd who leads His redeemed to safety in the final “Day of Wrath”.
Now, focusing on Orion (Chesil), there are two separate but related meanings that come from these two names for the constellation. As I said above, Chesil means the Strong One; but Orion also comes from a Hebrew root meaning “coming forth as light”. So combining these concepts, we have an obvious and powerful reference to the Messiah as the Strong One and the Branch (from the star Betelgeuse, or Tzemach in Hebrew); the coming Prince (from another star in Orion); and the One who comes forth like light, swiftly crushing the enemy under His foot (from the star Rigel). These awesome testimonies of God’s “Gospel in the Stars” only increase our trust in YHVH as the One and only Creator, Redeemer and Master of the universe, who tells the end of the story from the beginning.
Witness in the Stars?
Have you ever wondered why God says in Scripture that He counts the stars and calls them all by name (Ps 147:4)? What does He mean by that? Why would He want to name them, and are the names significant to us? When Abba Father took Abraham out and showed him the stars, He said “look towards heaven, and TELL the stars, if you will be able to list them; and He said unto him, ‘So shall your seed be’” (Gen 15:5). The word that is translated TELL is actually the same word used for taking a census, and means to not only count the stars but to call each of them by their names! Could it be that God told His people the names of the stars and was actually telling a story to them through those names? Read Ps 19:1-4 and see how this passage tells about the witness given by the stars, which Paul quoted as an irrefutable testimony in Rom 10:18 (also see Ps 89:37: “…Even like the faithful witness in the sky.”).
God created everything for a purpose. He created the heavenly bodies to give light, to separate the day from the night and to be for signs and seasons, and for days and years (Gen 1:14). We know that the sun and moon separate the day from the night, and the sun’s daily cycle allows us to keep a count of the passing days. The moon was God’s original light to help us keep track of the months of the year. However, it is much more difficult to keep track of the seasons and years strictly based on observing the daily movements of the sun and the monthly cycles of the moon. Ancient astronomers knew how to use the movements of the sun and moon through the various constellations of the zodiac (called mazzerot in scripture) to keep track of the seasons and years.
The sun travels through all twelve of the constellations throughout the course of the year. At any one point in time, this would make it possible for our ancestors (without the benefit of modern scientific calendars) to track the progress of the year and to know the current “season”. The passage in Ps 19:5-6 describes the movement of the sun through the constellations of the mazzerot during the course of the year. However, when you meditate on this passage at a deeper spiritual level, you can see the allusion to Messiah (Ps 19:4 “In them He has set a tabernacle for the sun, which is like a bridegroom coming out of his chamber, and rejoices like a strong man to run His race.”). “Them” refers to the stars in this passage. Remember that Yeshua (Jesus) is the “Sun of righteousness” from Mal 4:2. Also, from the original Hebrew names of the stars, we know that Messiah is represented by the “strongman” in a number of the constellations (e.g. Orion, Hercules, Leo, etc.). One clear example of this strongman type pointing to Yeshua comes from the original Hebrew name of Hercules – El Gibbor, which means “The Mighty One”, a designation for both Abba and Messiah (Father and Son) in Isa 9:6.
Going back to the original Hebrew meaning behind Gen 1:14, we see that the “seasons” Elohim (God) wanted His people to keep track of were actually not the four seasons of the year we recognize, but rather His moedim (Hebrew for “God’s appointed times”) which correspond to His Feast days that occur at specific times of the year. These moedim (feasts) are associated with significant acts of Yeshua in both His first and second coming. Job 38:32 confirms the importance of the stars in keeping track of God’s seasons: “Can you direct the sequence of the seasons or guide the Bear with her cubs across the heavens?” (Hebrew meaning of the “Bear and her cubs” refers to Yeshua’s sheepfold as His flock).
One of the strongest confirmations that Elohim has given us the Gospel message in the stars can be seen within the constellation Taurus. The Hebrew name for Taurus (bull) is shur, which means “the One who comes to rule”. This “Bull” is definitely a picture of Messiah, who is coming to rule on the earth. The Pleiades, a cluster of stars, is close to the head of the Bull, and is seen “Riding on the neck of Taurus”. Pleiades is sometimes called the 7 Sisters, but its Hebrew name is kimah, which means “congregation of the judge or ruler”. This agrees with Jude 14-15, which says: “Behold the LORD comes with 10,000’s of His saints (righteous ones) to execute judgment on all and to convict all who are ungodly.” Thus, through these and the other constellations, we have a very strong testimony that Elohim put them there to teach all of His children His Gospel story (see Rom 10:18, Ps 19:4).
Out of the Abundance of our Hearts
“A good person out of the good treasure of their heart brings forth good, but an evil person out of the evil treasure of their heart brings forth evil. For out of the abundance of the heart their mouth speaks” (Luke 6:45).
Have you ever wondered why God says in Scripture that His children are to write His Word on their hearts, as in Prov 3:3 and 7:3, where it says that we are to write His Word on the tablet of our hearts. What does a “tablet” make you think of? Certainly, it is a place to record something important, so that you can remember it later – this is true whether it is a paper tablet or a modern-day hand-held tablet computer, iPad or other eReader device.
So, we can think of our hearts as a place to keep God’s word safe and secure, as David said in Ps 119:11, that he would hide God’s Word in his heart that he might not sin. Another example of how important it is to keep the Word in our hearts is in Deut 30:14 – “But the word is very near you, in your mouth and in your heart, that you may do it.” This is why Ezekiel prophesied that God would take the “hearts of stone out of our flesh and give us hearts of flesh”. In other words, God softens and even circumcises (Jer 4:4) our hearts so He can prepare them to receive His Word.
Paul said in 2 Cor 3:3 that the believers in Corinth were like letters “written not with ink but by the Spirit of the living God, not on tablets of stone but on tablets of flesh, that is, of the heart.” Once again, we see how God has prepared the hearts of His people, in this case so that they can go forth to the world and be living testimonies (letters) sharing the Gospel of the Kingdom with all people.
What then is so special about our hearts, that we need to always keep them pure and filled with God’s Word (as in Prov 4:21 where it says we are to keep His Word “in the midst of our hearts”)? Did God design our hearts in a special way so that they can store and remember His Word, allowing us to keep it in the forefront of our minds whenever a situation arises in our lives that requires us to have His word on our lips and ready to speak.
Fortunately, living in this age of scientific research and technology, we now have confirmation from neuro-imaging that we actually have brain cells (neurons) located around our heart, which function in conjunction with the neurons in the head, and perform unique tasks within our body’s thought processes. From neurological research, we now know that “the heart-brain is composed of about 40,000 neurons that can sense, feel, learn and remember” (Science of the Heart: Exploring the Role of the Human Heart in Human Performance: http://www.heartmath.org/research/science-of-the-heart/introduction.html).
Brain researchers have also learned that the neurons in the heart-brain have both short- and long-term memory, and the signals they send to the head-brain can affect our perception and emotions. A number of scientists who have studied the heart-brain’s behavior and interaction with the head-brain have concluded that our heart-brain actually acts as our conscience, helping our head-brain make the right decisions and take the right actions. So we can truly say that hiding God’s word in our hearts (Ps 119:11) does actually keep us from sinning and keeping His word in the midst of our hearts brings us life and good health (Prov 4:22)!
Finally, dear brothers and sisters, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might. And these words that I command you today shall be on your heart. Deut 6:5-6
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